Sports
Naomi Osaka and the gravity of a superstar at the U.S. Open
NEW YORK — On Tuesday afternoon, the world No 88, in the U.S. Open main draw as a wildcard, destroyed the 10th seed Jelena Ostapenko in the U.S. Open first round.
In theory, that sounds like a shock win, but the wildcard in question is Naomi Osaka, a two-time champion here and one of the biggest draws of the tournament.
Osaka may be a natural introvert, but she has the gravity of a superstar, even as a wildcard. From her sensational outfit — which on Tuesday included a customised green tennis dress and a large green bow on her jacket — to her eye-catching power, she had enough to pummel Ostapenko into a 6-3, 6-2 defeat in just over an hour.
Naomi Osaka produced an almost error-free display of tennis to dispatch Jelena Ostapenko (Robert Prange / Getty Images)
Flushing Meadows is most associated with her two greatest triumphs. She won the U.S. Open title here in 2018 and 2020, beating Serena Williams in the first final on a famously tempestuous occasion — through no fault of Osaka’s — to announce herself as a star. But three years ago, it was the site of a breaking point. She threw her racket on multiple occasions and received a code violation for firing a ball into the crowd during an excruciating defeat to Canada’s Leylah Fernandez. When asked about what happened, she said: “I’m not really sure why.”
“Recently, I feel very anxious when things don’t go my way,” she said.
In the three years since, during which Osaka has continued to transcend tennis for her openness to discussing its impact on her mental health, Osaka had not won a match at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
She returned to the sport in late December after giving birth to her daughter, Shai, and upon beating Ostapenko she looked to the sky as tears flowed, overcome by the emotion of her first victory in New York since 2021. There was a lot to process, but what actually set Osaka off went back to her childhood.
“It was a combination of a lot of different things,” she said after her victory.
“I grew up here, so just seeing kids, and then remembering my daughter, but also seeing kids coming and watching me play… And just remembering that I was a kid, I guess a long time ago, made me very emotional,” Osaka said.
Her mind also went back to this time last year when with her daughter not even two months old, Osaka watched on from the stands as Coco Gauff got on her way to winning the title. Osaka didn’t know then whether she could reclaim the level that made her a champion here twice, took her to world No 1, and brought her two more Grand Slam titles, both in Australia.
That feeling has carried on throughout much of 2024, which saw her begin her comeback after 15 months away from the tour on New Year’s Eve. The first half of the season included some promising results, including a barnstorming French Open clash with world No 1 Iga Swiatek, but the last few months have been tough. They have prompted introspection.
After a disappointing loss in the Cincinnati qualifiers to Ashlyn Krueger, Osaka again opened up.
“My biggest issue currently isn’t losses, though, my biggest issue is that I don’t feel like I’m in my body.”
Osaka, laying down on Arthur Ashe after winning the title in 2020, has opened up about her struggles in returning to tennis (Matthew Stockman / Getty Images)
It was a startling admission and perhaps reflected the pressure Osaka was feeling. Throughout the year, the message from those close to her had been that the former world No 1 should be judged not on the promise of the clay and grass swings, in which she found her feet, but during the summer hard-court season.
On her favourite surface, Osaka would come alive.
“It’s almost, like, you have a deadline and you’re crunching at midnight to try to make it,” Osaka said on Tuesday about the narrowing window she has to deliver on hard courts this year. Until Tuesday, her best individual performance had remained that stunning night match at the French Open, where she held a match point against Swiatek. In the two biggest hard-court events ahead of the U.S. Open, Osaka lost in the second round at the Canadian Open and then failed to qualify for Cincinnati.
Even giving herself the grace of returning to the tour after giving birth, Osaka was impatient and concerned. She likened her discomfort on court to how she had felt in general postpartum. Desperate to feel herself again in competition, on Tuesday that feeling returned.
The Louis Armstrong Stadium fizzed with anticipation after Osaka’s two-year absence. A striking matchup against Ostapenko, a top-10 player who can come alive on the biggest occasions — and has an unbeaten record against Swiatek — only added to the feeling that this match, like Osaka and Swiatek’s second-round encounter in Paris, would befit a late-stage occasion rather than an opener. Osaka, world No 88 or not, retains the gravity of all she has done in the sport no matter her ranking.
The match started evenly, but from the moment Osaka broke at 4-3 in the first set, the outcome was never in doubt. She started to hit her forehand with increasing freedom and venom; Ostapenko, a former French Open champion, had no answer.
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Osaka celebrated points with loud “come ons” and fist pumps and the crowd matched her noise and energy. In what was an outstanding exhibition of controlled aggression, she didn’t lose her serve throughout and banged down nine aces to secure a first win over a top-10 opponent for more than four years. After Osaka had clinched the victory with a cross-court forehand winner, she sat down and covered her face with a towel as the tears poured out.
“Just seeing the stadium really full, it meant a lot because I was, like, ‘Oh, I hope people come watch me play,’” she said afterwards.
She followed up that piece of disarming modesty by laying down the gauntlet in the most softly spoken and understated way imaginable.
“I feel like for me, this court is my home — it gives me so much more confidence.”
She also had extra motivation to beat Ostapenko on Tuesday, knowing that if she did, she would get the chance to wear the other outfit she had ready for the tournament. “That was very important to me,” Osaka said with a smile.
Where this run will lead is in question. Osaka next faces last year’s semifinalist Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic, with another opportunity for a statement victory. Before all of that, she can soak in a win against a top-tier opponent and the U.S. Open can once again revel in the gravitational pull of a tennis superstar.
(Top photo: Robert Prange/Getty Images)
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Brooks Koepka may have returned to the PGA Tour following a stint at LIV Golf, but do not expect the Saudi-backed league’s other biggest stars to join in.
Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm and Cameron Smith all committed to staying put when speaking to reporters on Tuesday at a preseason press conference.
“I had no idea, no idea that that would happen.” DeChambeau said. “No idea what the penalties would even be. Right now, I’ve got a contract. I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do at LIV Golf this year.”
Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm walk to the eighth green during the first round of the Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village Golf Club on June 2, 2022. (Adam Cairns/The Columbus Dispatch)
“I made a decision to come out here and spend more time at home, and I’m not giving that away. I’ll be on LIV for years to come,” added Smith, who won the 2022 Open Championship shortly before officially committing to LIV.
DeChambeau and Smith each left in 2022, but Rahm was perhaps the biggest surprise. Once very outspoken against LIV, he joined the league in December 2023.
In August 2024, he shut down rumors of buyer’s remorse to Fox News Digital, and that still appears to be the case.
“I’m not planning on going anywhere. Very similar answer to what Bryson gave. I wish Brooks the best. As far as I’m concerned, I’m focused on the league and my team this year, and hopefully we can repeat as champions again,” Rahm said.
Koepka’s decision came weeks after he revealed he would be leaving the rival series.
“I want to thank my family and my team for their continued support throughout every step of my professional career,” he wrote on social media. “When I was a child, I always dreamed about competing on the @PGATOUR, and I am just as excited today to announce that I am returning to the PGA TOUR. Being closer to home and spending more time with my family makes this opportunity especially meaningful to me.
Brooks Koepka, of the United States, acknowledges the crowd on the 5th green during the first round of the British Open golf championship at the Royal Portrush Golf Club in Northern Ireland, July 17, 2025. (Peter Morrison, File/AP Photo)
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“I believe in where the PGA TOUR is headed with new leadership, new investors, and an equity program that gives players a meaningful ownership stake,” he continued. “I also understand there are financial penalties associated with this decision, and I accept those.”
Koepka said he planned to be at the Farmers Insurance Open and the Waste Management Phoenix Open in the coming weeks.
PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp said Koepka’s return sparked the Returning Member Program for those who left the company and may decide to follow in Koepka’s footsteps.
Rolapp said Koepka agreed to a few conditions upon his return to the PGA Tour. It included a “five-year forfeiture of potential equity in the PGA Tour’s Player Equity Program, representing one of the largest financial repercussions in professional sports history, with estimations that he could miss out on approximately $50–85 million in potential earnings, depending on his competitive performance and the growth of the Tour,” according to Rolapp. Koepka will also make a $5 million charitable donation to an organization yet to be determined.
Brooks Koepka during the second round of the PGA Championship golf tournament at Quail Hollow. (Aaron Doster/Imagn Images)
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Koepka became the first person to return to the PGA Tour after defecting for LIV.
Fox News’ Ryan Gaydos contributed to this report.
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Luka Doncic and LeBron James were listed as questionable for the Lakers’ back-to-back game Tuesday night against the Atlanta Hawks. Doncic because of left groin soreness, James because of left foot joint arthritis and right sciatica.
Also, checking the stat sheet before the game, the Lakers were listed as one of the worst three-point shooting teams and one of the worst defensive shooting percentage teams in the league.
Well, Luka played and LeBron played and the Lakers shot lights-out from three-point range and were solid across the board on defense while i rolling over the Hawks 141-116 at Crypto.com Arena.
Doncic felt soreness in his groin when the Lakers played at Sacramento on Monday night and was unsure about playing Tuesday. But he played and delivered 27 points, 12 assists and five rebounds.
James didn’t play in the second game of a back-to-back game last week at New Orleans and San Antonio and said he will be listed as TBD, to be determined, in such scenarios. But James played against the Hawks and nearly produced a triple-double with 31 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds.
Coming into the game, opponents were shooting 48.8% from the field and 37.4% from three against the Lakers, ranking them 28th and 26th, respectively, in the NBA.
The Hawks began the game ranked fourth in three-point shooting, making 37.4%, and they were ranked eighth in field-goal percentage, making 43.6%.
All of the above made for a bad recipe for the Lakers entering the game.
But when the game started, none of that mattered to the Lakers, who held the Hawks to 45% shooting and 28.3% from three-point range.
The Lakers shot 55.9% (19 for 34) from three-point range.
The Lakers’ big lead was sliced to 11 points in the fourth.
But back-to-back three-pointers by James and Marcus Smart, both off passes from Doncic, and a Doncic basket gave them a 19-point lead, and they never looked back.
The Lakers scored 81 points in the first half, a season-high for points in a half, a half in which they opened a 23-point lead and had the Hawks reeling from the beginning.
Doncic missed just one of his six three-pointers in the first half. Gabe Vincent came off the bench and missed just one of his four three-pointers in the first half.
Rui Hachimura had missed the previous seven games with a right calf strain but was back in action against the Hawks. He had seven points and two rebounds in 18 minutes.
ETC: The Lakers signed guard Kobe Bufkin to a 10-day contract Tuesday. The 6-foot-5 Bufkin played in seven games for the South Bay Lakers, the Lakers’ G League team, where he averaged 28.7 points, 5.4 rebounds and 5.0 assists over seven games. He has appeared in 27 career NBA games over two seasons with the Hawks. “You know, during the stretch, we’ll have opportunities during this 10-day,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said…. Backup center Jaxson Hayes didn’t play against the Hawks because of left hamstring soreness. Redick said Hayes got some “imaging” Tuesday on his injury and that the Lakers will have “more information” going forward.
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Mike Tomlin is stepping down as head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers, according to multiple reports.
Tomlin’s decision on Tuesday came after a blowout loss against the Houston Texans in the AFC Wild Card Round of the playoffs. It marked the Steelers’ seventh straight postseason defeat.
This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.
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